Qingpu agroforestry concept design

After proposing our conceptual plan for the green ring of Qingpu, our team was invited to make a detailed design for the area in the northwest. This part is rich in water resources and we used this as base for our design. From a small scale traditional agricultural area, it transformed into a large scale fields with crops of a single species, with large effects of losses of the biodiversity of course. We did  research and found that the water areas reduced and the traditional dikes and water management systems also gradually disappeared. This is a landscape with great historical and cultural value in Qingpu, so it is essential to restore or renew this system.

To enhance the ecological and historical value of this area, our plan focuses on the introduction of agroforestry. We developed a phased plan to bring the ancient field structure and water management system back to the site and make use of it. Firstly, the dikes will be gradually restored, new dikes will be created, and an additional water system will be planned. The area used to have many fishponds, but many disappeared because the demand decreased. We wanted to bring this aspect of this area back in our design though, so our second strategy was to plan the deep-water rice fields and wetland forests to improve water connections in the whole area, they serve multiple functions, such as buffer and infiltration zones for stormwater. Deep-water rice fields can also be used for aquaculture, organic fertilizer production (planting green manure and compost) and the wetland forests are benefit to both biodiversity and local tourism.

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As for agriculture, we plan the small scale farmland on the riverbanks with rich crop species, this way the dike structure will be visible again in the landscape. We can trace them back in history: in the past, houses were usually located on the riverbank, and the dikes had no land owners, so the residents adopted them and there was place for nature, solitairy trees, but also graves and small-scale allotment gardens. So in the past the dikes formed a real penetration of nature through the whole rural area. We want to restore this or renew it by small scale nature, fields, flower belts and edible small shrubs, so the identity and the ecological network will be restored again.

To connect all these areas, we suggested a separate ring road to connect the villages with additional bridges. On this way the inhabitants of the new town can easily recreate in the rural area and the people who live in the villages will have extra income from this tourism.

Project
Qingpu agroforestry concept design

Year
2022

Client
Qingpu District People’s Government, Shanghai Municipal Planning and Natural Resources Bureau, Shanghai Municipal Greening and City Appearance Administration Bureau

Collaboration
BDAW

Area
8.7km2

Location
Shanghai, China